Family Holidays

www.czechtourism.com

A Country where Children MAy Find their PArAdise

(... and adults may relax)
Would you like to offer your children a lot of unique and unforgettable experiences? The Czech Republic has a number of childrens paradises, where you may find more than climbing frames, swings or sand pits. Take them to the world where historic monuments are not only dead artefacts. Parents usually try to make holidays for their children more interesting; they would like the children to experience something extraordinary or unique, and to learn something new at the same time. Many children, aware of their parents intentions, think about how to avoid parental plans, which very often include wandering round various monuments and museums. However, neither children nor parents should despair. In the Czech Republic, supposedly boring things may become amusing, and children may be as happy as their parents. Come and spend your leisure time in places where children may experience wonderful adventures in the world of adults, and where adults are allowed to get back to their childhood for a few moments. The opportunities are so plentiful that each of you can make a choice.

Trips in the Czech Republic:

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hoorAy into the Countryside

(On foot, on a bike, in a boat)
Would you like to rest from the town turmoil and do something for your health? In nice weather, you may see hundreds of kilometres in the distance from tourist points of view, totalling over two thousand, from high castle towers, or from ruins on hill tops. Czechs are a nation of tourists, cyclists, and skiers; they know how to fully enjoy their beautiful countryside in summer or in winter. A small country, surrounded by a ring of mountain ranges, offers everything that you learnt in geography: high mountains, deep ravines, meandering rivers suitable for water sports, vast reservoirs, wild waterfalls, quiet lakes hidden in the woods, nature reserves with rare plants, birds, animals, and, last but not least, the common countryside. You may stay in a nature farm with family atmosphere and a kitchen like at your grandmothers;

it is possible to spend time there horse riding, fishing, playing with domestic animals, helping in the household, or just relaxing and reading a nice book. In South Bohemia there is a real rarity: a paradise of water sports hundreds of artificial lakes, called fish ponds, were made there in the Middle Ages. The Romberk lake, the largest in the Czech Republic, is so vast that it is possible to see the curvature of the Earth on its surface. Another attraction may be rock cities, loved by climbers. Some incredibly shaped rock formations, labyrinths of Tolkienlike mysterious underground passages, open to the public, or stalactite caves, where only water drops mark the time in complete silence, will open your fantasy.

www.cesky-raj.info www. krkonose.eu www.ceskesvycarsko.cz www.region-vysocina.cz www.cyklistevitani.cz www.cyklo-jizni-morava.cz www.caves.cz www.raft.cz

Do you know that the Czech Republic has one of the most widespread tourist path signposting systems in the world? Creating and completing this system is a traditional activity performed by the Club of Czech Tourism, which has, since 1889, gradually made countless beauty spots accessible. At present, there are approximately 40 000 km of marked tourist paths for walking, cross-country skiing and cycling in the Czech Republic.

www.kct.cz

MonuMents in A diFFerent wAy

(Castles, chteaux and cities)
Would you like to see fairy-tale castles, chteaux or entire cities? Would you like to take part in knights jousts and battles? Then we should recommend avoiding the main tourist routes and focus on things really interesting for children. In many places, day or even night visits are organised in the presence of ghosts. Children will meet supernatural creatures of the Czech lands or fictional animals that often appear on noble families emblems. You may be sure your children will never forget meeting wood nymphs, a wailing forest spirit, a dragon, or the mythical Pegasus. In summer, various interesting events in period costumes are held in a number of www.helfstyn.cz www. hrad-rozmberk.cz www.hradbitov.cz www.slatinany.cz www.zamekloucen.cz

places. You may find historical atmosphere, competitions in fights on parapets or in strong bow shooting. You will learn how to work at the blacksmiths and at the potters wheel, how to weave baskets, how to operate a weaving loom, how to make hand-made paper or candles; you may try a variety of crafts yourselves. You will be caught up in the tide of celebrations, will be able to see period dances and fencing fights, hear period music and songs. Eventually, look forward to wining and dining: you may enjoy some celebrated meals in medieval taverns.

Do you know that, every year in midSeptember, the town of Jin turns into a one-week-long fairy-tale kingdom, where all local fairy-tale creatures come to life? This traditional festival called Jin, a Fairy-Tale City, always starts with a great parade headed by the wellknown robber Rumcajs and ends with magnificent fireworks.

www.jicin .cz
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AMuseMent And eduCAtion

(Educational visits, technical monuments, museums)
Would you like to know something about the past, discover mysteries of traditional crafts and industrial production, or learn something new? There is a variety of ways to widen your horizons in the Czech Republic. Explore old mine shafts, where you can descend in a mining lift, ride in a mining truck, or slide to the mine. Visit glass museums or glassworks, in which glassmakers at stoked-up kilns, blowing forcefully, make glass dance. Children will love technical museums, where they may admire the beauty of historic bicycles, motorcycles, railway carriages and aeroplanes. Seeing these things, they may realise that life would be hardly imaginable without them today. In addition, rides on historic steam trains or some other exhibited vehicles offer an

opportunity to travel back in time, which will satisfy the childrens desire evoked by the museum visit. Yet the latest hits are various technical games rooms and IQ parks, which enable young visitors to get acquainted with the laws of physics, optics, and their technical applications. In this way, these facilities are completely different from usual museums, where notices saying Do not touch the exhibits allow no contact with the exhibited objects. Here, on the other hand, the main instruction is to touch, observe, and learn.

Do you know that the most interesting railway is a hundred years old and was called the Szava Pacific by enthusiastic travellers? Situated near Prague in its beautiful surrounding countryside, it overcomes wild canyons, rivers and rock formations as if you suddenly found yourself in an exciting film from the Wild West. The railway in an extremely hard terrain is a unique technical work with a number of interesting bridges, tunnels, up and down jumps, or elevated tracks.

www.muzeum-pribram.cz www. muzeumokd.cz www.sklarna.euweb.cz www.technicalmuseum.cz www.ntm.cz www.centrumbabylon.cz www.jhmd.cz

www.posazavi.com

line, counted among the most advanced battlements in Europe in the interwar period. Military history lovers should not miss visiting one of the Czech military museums: thanks to a wide variety of exhibits and extensive collections containing numerous unique objects, they rank among the most remarkable European institutions of this kind. To name one as an example, the Military Museum in Leany may be mentioned, showing a children-sized tank from which boys may slide down a chute. www.militarymuseum.cz www.boudamuseum.com www.bunkry.cz

PArAdise For young And grown-uP Boys

(Battles, bunkers, fortresses)
Would you like to take part in fights and battles that happened in the area of the Czech Republic? In all seasons of the year, you may visit some of the really attractive battle scenes; numerous groups of enthusiasts from all over Europe in historic uniforms meet there. You may only choose the period you would like to find yourself in: the choice is really wide, ranging from the Middle Ages to World War II. As part of these events, you may visit large military camps, period fairs, and popular bazaars selling militaria. If you cannot manage to visit any of these events as time does not allow you to do so, do not despair. The Czech Republic offers countless places that are well-liked by boys from three to a hundred years old. Among them are, e. g. underground artillery fortresses and bunkers built along the Czech-German border in 19351938. The giant concrete forts, built as copies of the Maginot

Do you know that every year as many as almost four hundred enthusiasts from 23 countries of the world take part in the battle scenes showing Napoleons army victory over a lot more numerous troops of the Austrian Emperor Franz I and the Russian Czar Alexander I at Austerlitz in Moravia?

www.austerlitz.org

roMAnCe on horses
(Western-like villages)
Would you like to see the Wild West, an open-air show full of attractions, or period competitions in stylised surroundings? Then you should visit one of the western-like villages: they offer various programmes, but none of them, like in the real Wild West, fails to include horses. Stroking a horse or riding a horse are not the only attractions. Children may go mad on Indian fields or join sketches prepared for this event. They may try all kinds of various skills, such as horse riding, gold sifting, archery, tomahawk throwing or lassoing. As a reward for completing the course, they get ranchers dollars to be

exchanged for ice-cream or perhaps small souvenirs. In the afternoon, you may watch cowboys and Indians presenting their skills: westernlike and Indian horse riding, working with whips and lassos. This is the way to enjoy Red Indian stories and western-like shows; a day full of games and competitions in a western-like village is definitely worth it.

Do you know that a trip to a westernlike village does not have to take you just one day? In most villages, period accommodation is offered: Indian teepees, cabins, frontier carts, a bed in the sheriffs office, or a hotel room over a saloon.

www.kostelany.cz www.ranc-orel.cz/cs www.western.cz www.wildwest.cz

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Adventure with AniMAls (Zoological gardens

and underwater worlds)
Would you like to find yourself in a group of monkeys in the rain forest, in a savannah surrounded by giant giraffes and elegant cheetahs, or under water close to coral reefs? Then we recommend visiting one of many Czech zoos, which have changed their outlook dramatically. Instead of the former ugly cages with animals, we may see modern zoos with large mixed zoological and botanic premises; iron grills, tiles and concrete walls were replaced by glass

windows, wooden structures, ditches and small islands strewn in water. The animals are presented in unique habitats, as close as possible to their natural surroundings. In addition to classic zoos, also underwater worlds permanent fish exhibitions are worth visiting. Seawater fish and animals are to be seen in Pragues Sea Aquarium. In modern aquariums, which are perfect simulations of the sea creatures natural surroundings, you will find a world normally observed only by the best divers. In the ENVI house in central Hradec Krlov, you may even experience tropical surroundings. Apart from a giant aquarium with an underwater tunnel, you will also find a tropical bridge, where you may sense what it is like to be in a tropical rain forest.

www.zoo.cz www.morsky-svet.cz www.obriakvarium.cz

Do you know that the Zoo in Hradec Krlov tends the highest number of African animals in Europe? As the only one in the Czech Republic it offers African safari, which is open from May to September; visitors ride on special safari buses among the freely roaming animals. These rides, especially after dusk, evoke the atmosphere of the real African surroundings.

www.zoodk.cz
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PlACes where the tiMe stoPPed (Dino-parks)

Would you like to make an expedition to the Earths past or a study trip to the Mesozoic with the whole family? Dinosaurs, the giant creatures from the early days of the Earth, whose skeletons turned into stone after long years in

oblivion, came to life again; you may see them, in their original sizes, in the theme parks in Pilsen and Vykov. Dino-parks are parks with mobile sound and visual models of dinosaurs. In the park there is a three dimensional cinema offering a unique show; this complex equipment manages to project two images at the same time. Visitors are loaned three dimensional glasses, which add to the realism of the show, and they can feel like being within the panoramic view itself. For young children, there are children playgrounds with a number of attractions and a unique Archeo-park, where they may discover the lost world of these fantastic creatures. A paleontological playground will acquaint children up to 15 with the work of palaeontologists; if they are successful, they may find an unknown creatures skeleton hidden in a sand pit. The exercise will be to identify and name the animal.

Do you know that, from 2006, a real Mesozoic plant called Wollemi Nobilis, unique world-wide, is to be seen in the Dino-park? Mere 39 specimen of this tree, a variety of a prehistoric pine, were found in the Australian wilderness in 1994. Seeing this plant, which grew on the Earth 175 million years ago, a botanist may have a similar feeling as a biologist who suddenly sees a real living dinosaur.

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www.dinopark.cz

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want to stay on the ground, try your courage and ability on overhead cables or artificial climbing walls. Not only children can try what it is like to move on cables nine metres over the ground. Dont worry if, for some reason, someone could not manage to climb up or down: there is a climbing instructor at hand to help. Try also a special attraction become free from gravity for a moment and experience the state of weightlessness. Jumping on trampolines has remarkable curative effects: it does no harm to joints, makes the body stronger, and has intense influence on burning your fat. Try how long you are able to be in action or if you can manage a somersault.

AdrenAlin And relAxAtion

(Bobsleighing, high ropes, trampolining)
Are you looking for real excitement? Are you a speed lover? Then you are in the right place. Visitors can make their choice from a variety of bobsleighing tracks open all the year round, which offer the greatest excitement of your trip. Riders may regulate the speed by means of brakes so that everyone will choose a speed that suits him. It is only up to you if you choose a speedy sports ride or a slow ride, during which you can enjoy the surrounding countryside. If you do not

www.slideland.cz www.bobovadraha.cz www.bobovka.cz www.tarzanie.cz www.vysokalana.cz www.relaxpark.cz www.lanovecentrum.cz www. zlutaplovarna.cz www.offpark.cz

Do you know that the bobsleighing track in pindlerv Mln numbers, according to the equipment producers, among the three most attractive projects of this kind in the world? The whole of this system has a length of 1400 m, and the rider during his ride on the 7,03 % steep track will travel 22 turns, 5 terrain jumps and 3 tunnels.

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www.kudyznudy.cz

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leArn through PlAy (Prague)

Would you like to spend your leisure time in the capital and enable your children to experience something unusual at the same time? Monuments and monuments again, endless galleries and museums, shopping, wandering in Pragues crooked streets and pedestrian zones adults love that, but children get soon tired of it. Yet even in Prague children may find plenty of opportunities to enjoy themselves, ranging (alphabetically A-Z) from an aqua-park to the zoo. Architectural wonders become unexpectedly attractive seen from a seat in an old landau, from the window of a polished veteran car, a tourist tram, a steam ship, or from a rowing boat on the Vltava. There is one trip you should not miss: going up to the top of Petn by funicular. There you may climb the Petn observation tower (a copy of the famous Eiffel Tower in Paris)

with a magnificent view of the whole of Prague. Then in a nearby mirror maze you have to find a way out of the mirror hall to a model battle scene showing the Swedes against Prague citizens on Charles Bridge. Its clever combination of a three dimensional foreground and the background painting enlivens a feeling that the scene is real. After that, you will enter a room called a laughter hall with numerous crazy mirrors; looking in them with starry eyes and laughing without restraint, you can improve your image. You may end your day in the magical atmosphere of the tefnik observatory, offering, in addition to observing the sky in the daytime and at night as well, a variety of interesting programmes for children.

Do you know that the word robot was born in Czech literature? In 1920, Karel apek used it in his play for the first time. However, an artificial man is said to have lived in Prague in the 16th century a giant called Golem. According to Jewish legends, Rabbi Jehuda Lw ben Bezalel made Golem of clay to be his servant; then he brought him to life by placing a magic stone in the hole in his forehead. The wise rabbis grave can be found in one of the most mysterious Pragues places the Old Jewish Cemetery.

www.prague-info.cz www.observatory.cz www.nm.cz www.tower.cz www.zoopraha.cz

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where wishes CoMe true (Happy land)

With a bit of imagination, the entire Czech Republic might be called a happy land. Hopefully, you will enjoy happy days of a memorable holiday in the nice countryside, surrounded by historic monuments and imaginative people, who can prepare truly good amusement for children.

This indicates officially certified accommodation facilities

This indicates official tourist information centres

www.stastnazeme.cz www.housuvmlyn.cz www. botanicus.cz

Happy land this is the name of a children amusement park; in the Happy land, your children may participate in various activities arranged there. During the traditional straw celebration (called Slamk in Czech), exciting competitions in skiing and sledging on straw are held. Creative children will be glad to make their own straw figures. If youve ever been in trouble for playing with your food, check out the Tomato Festival (Rajetina), and take part in one of the worlds biggest tomato fights!

Published by Sign-Print for Czech Tourism Prague 2008 Translation: Zdena Povicov Photos: CzechTourism, Karel Cudln, Pavel Fri, Dan Friedlaender & Sr., Viktor Chlad, Lanov centrum DDM hl. m. Prahy, Miroslav Krob & Jr., Roman Maleek, Skeln hu JIMA, Libor Svek, Vydavatelstv MCU s.r.o. Printed: Print Design & Production

Official tourist presentation of the Czech Republic

www.czechtourism.com

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Family Holidays